Department for Transport

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

lord porter of spalding: To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the findings of the 2019 Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance Survey, published by the Asphalt Industry Alliance in March, which reported that the roads repair backlog stands at over £9 billion, what steps they are taking to (1) resource councils to address this backlog, and (2) provide additional funding for road maintenance budgets as part of the forthcoming Spending Review.

baroness vere of norbiton: The Government is providing over £6.6 billion of capital funding between 2015 and 2021 for local highways maintenance in England, outside of London. This includes funding of over £296 million through a dedicated Pothole Action Fund and £420 million for highways maintenance as announced in the Budget 2018. Decisions on additional funding for local highways maintenance will be considered as part of the Spending Review.

Bicycles: Hire Services

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to introduce legislation to give local authorities greater powers to control the establishment of bicycle hire schemes and to set standards on how such schemes should be run.

baroness vere of norbiton: Local authorities already have powers to deal with hire bicycles if they are causing an obstruction or nuisance, and are also able to introduce local byelaws as appropriate. The Government will continue to monitor the impacts of bike hire schemes and to work with local authorities and scheme operators as appropriate on ways of addressing any problems that arise.

Driving under Influence

earl attlee: To ask Her Majesty's Government for what reason the drink drive limit in England and Wales was set at 80 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of blood; and what scientific studies, if any, were the basis for determining that limit.

baroness vere of norbiton: The Road Safety Act 1967 made it an offence to drive a vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) in excess of 80 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood and obliged drivers to submit to a screening, breathalyser test at the roadside in certain circumstances. In 1966 Professor Allsop published a paper “Alcohol and Road Accidents” which stated that earlier research by Professor Borkenstein in 1964 showed that with “blood alcohol levels above 80 mg/100 ml, the risk of being involved in an accident is higher”. Professor Allsop’s report provided the basis for setting the drink drive limit in 1967.

Motor Vehicles

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government by what date they aim to remove all petrol- and diesel-powered vehicles from the UK’s roads.

baroness vere of norbiton: Cars and vans account for the majority of road transport emissions. By 2050 we want almost every car and van in the UK to be zero emission. We will end the sale of new conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2040. The Government’s 2018 Road to Zero Strategy sets out a clear pathway to achieving this, to give clarity and certainty to both industry and motorists. By 2030 we want at least half of new cars sold, and as many as 70%, to be ultra low emission, alongside up to 40% of new vans. The Government’s long term goal is the development and deployment of zero emission technologies for all road vehicles, including HGVs and buses, and zero emission technologies are starting to emerge even for the largest vehicles.

Aviation: Scotland

lord forsyth of drumlean: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 3 June (HL15919), whether they will now answer the question put.

lord forsyth of drumlean: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 3 June (HL15919), what evidence they have for the competitiveness of airfares between London and Scotland; whether they will provide the figures for the cost of such flights which informed their assessment that “Scotland is well-served by air services into London”; whether they have conducted a comparative analysis of the costs of flights from Scotland to all London airports; and if not, why not.

baroness vere of norbiton: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 11 June 2019.The correct answer should have been:

I refer to the answer of 3 June (HL15919), which states that the aviation sector operates in a competitive, commercial environment, investing to attract passengers and responding to demand when determining routes to operate. It is therefore not for the Department to carry out this type of assessment, nor to comment on whether there is sufficient competition. I can, however, confirm that CAA data for 2018 shows that the four largest airports in Scotland (Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Inverness and Glasgow) have flights to two or more airports in the London system, with flights operated by multiple airlines. In addition, the UK Government, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Dundee City Council, provide financial support for an air route from Dundee to Stanstead, Stansted through a public service obligation. Scotland will also benefit from an expanded Heathrow, where there will be further opportunity to enhance connections to the country’s biggest hub airport. This information, which is already in the public domain, shows that there is sufficient competition for air routes between London and Scotland.

baroness vere of norbiton: I refer to the answer of 3 June (HL15919), which states that the aviation sector operates in a competitive, commercial environment, investing to attract passengers and responding to demand when determining routes to operate. It is therefore not for the Department to carry out this type of assessment, nor to comment on whether there is sufficient competition. I can, however, confirm that CAA data for 2018 shows that the four largest airports in Scotland (Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Inverness and Glasgow) have flights to two or more airports in the London system, with flights operated by multiple airlines. In addition, the UK Government, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Dundee City Council, provide financial support for an air route from Dundee to Stanstead, Stansted through a public service obligation. Scotland will also benefit from an expanded Heathrow, where there will be further opportunity to enhance connections to the country’s biggest hub airport. This information, which is already in the public domain, shows that there is sufficient competition for air routes between London and Scotland.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Unfair Practices: Competition

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of a no-deal Brexit on the number of cases submitted to the Competitionand Markets Authority.

lord henley: The Government is confident in the CMA’s readiness for EU exit. The CMA has detailed plans in place to meet the additional caseload arising from exit. The CMA’s current estimate is that EU exit will lead to an additional 30-50 merger cases, an additional 5-7 competition enforcement cases, and 20-30 state aid cases each year.

Department for Education

Breakfast Clubs: Finance

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will make a decision on funding for the National School Breakfast Programme.

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the current annual cost to the public purse of the National School Breakfast Programme.

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the National School Breakfast Programme on educational attainment.

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the number of children receiving breakfasts under the National School Breakfast Programme; and how that compares with the original numbers anticipated.

lord agnew of oulton: The department is investing up to £26 million in a breakfast club programme, using funds from Soft Drinks Industry Levy revenues. This money will kick start or improve breakfast clubs in over 1,700 schools. The focus of these clubs has been to target the most disadvantaged areas of the country including the Department for Education’s opportunity areas to help make sure every child gets the best start in life.A contract was awarded to Family Action in March 2018 and will run until March 2020. Family Action, in partnership with Magic Breakfast, have both been named as the leading charities responsible for running the breakfast club programme. Family Action are distributing the appropriate funding to participating schools who meet the eligibility criteria. Family Action has confirmed that they have reached their recruitment target of 1,775 schools.We monitor management information from the programme on an ongoing basis and will also review the effectiveness of the programme fully once the programme concludes including the number of children attending. In March 2019, Family Action indicated that by the start of the summer term over 250,000 children would be benefiting from the programme.

Ministry of Justice

Prisoners: Repatriation

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government, as a result of international conventions and bilateral agreements on the transfer of sentenced persons, how many people have (1) returned to the UK from any such country, and (2) been repatriated from the UK.

lord keen of elie: Any foreign national who comes to our country and abuses our hospitality by breaking the law should be in no doubt of our determination to punish and deport them. More than 48,000 foreign national offenders have been removed from the UK since 2010, and in the last financial year more than 5,000 were removed from prisons, immigration removal centres, and the community. Prisoner transfer is one of the mechanisms used to remove foreign national offenders. Between 1 May 2014 and 31 May 2019, 464 sentenced prisoners were transferred from England and Wales to other countries under international prisoner transfer arrangements. During the same period 233 sentenced prisoners were transferred to England and Wales. The transfer of prisoners into and out of Scotland and Northern Ireland is a devolved matter.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Affordable Housing

the earl of listowel: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that teachers, nurses and social workers can afford to live in areas of high cost housing.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: We have strengthened the revised National Planning Policy Framework so that local authorities are expected to have planning policies which identify homes needed for different groups in the community. The Framework acknowledges that essential local workers, including teachers, nurses and social workers, are a group that may require access to affordable housing. Local authorities should consider this when setting local policies. Where there is identified need, local authorities may seek to introduce policies that support the delivery of affordable housing for essential local workers.The Department for Health and Social Care have taken specific steps to support essential staff in accessing affordable housing in high cost areas. This includes the introduction of a national expectation that, when local NHS estate owners are disposing of surplus land, NHS staff will be offered first refusal on all affordable housing built on the land.

Retail Trade: Urban Areas

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of business rates on high street businesses; and whether they have any plans to make UK town centres free-trade zones.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: From April 2019 the Government introduced a new business rates retail discount, providing eligible retailers with a third off their bills for two years. At the 2018 Autumn Budget, the Chancellor also announced a long-term plan to support the transformation of high streets and town centres. This includes a £675 million Future High Streets Fund to help make high streets and town centres fit for the future.

Ministry of Defence

Syria: Islamic State

baroness cox: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that the Global Coalition Against Daesh carried out airstrikes on ferries owned by the government of Syria transporting oil near al-Shuhail; why any such attack was carried out; and whether any such attack is part of the strategic aims of that Coalition.

earl howe: We have seen no evidence that the Coalition has conducted any airstrikes on ferries owned by the government of Syria transporting oil near al-Shuhail.

Armed Forces: Vehicles

earl attlee: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 9 May(HL15373), whether the Ministry of Defence will adhere to paragraph 5.2 of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s Guide to Maintaining Road Worthiness of Commercial Goods and Passenger Carrying Vehicles, published in November 2018, which states that tyres in single formation should not be kept in service on a heavy goods vehicle for more than 10 years.

earl howe: The Ministry of Defence policy is that tyres fitted to vehicles are inspected at regular intervals in line with the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency's Heavy goods vehicle (HGV) inspection manual 2018 edition. This takes into account the requirements in paragraph 5.2 of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency's Guide to Maintaining Road Worthiness of Commercial Goods and Passenger Carrying Vehicles, published in November 2018.

Armed Forces: Vehicles

earl attlee: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of tyres fitted in single formation which are in use on vehicles used by the Ministry of Defence; and what estimate they have made of the cost in each of the next 10 years of replacing tyres that are 10 or more years old.

earl howe: Details on the number of tyres fitted in single formation on vehicles used by the Ministry of Defence are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. No estimate of the cost of replacing tyres that are 10 or more years old has been made. All vehicles are maintained and serviced regularly, at which time tyres are replaced if they do not meet minimum legal and safety standards.

Armed Forces: Vehicles

earl attlee: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that heavy goods vehicle tyres used by the Ministry of Defence that are more than 10 years old are not exported for use in developing countries; and what estimate they have made of the loss of income from such sales.

earl attlee: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that heavy goods vehicles used by the Ministry of Defence with tyres that are more than 10 years old are not exported for use in developing countries; and what estimate they have made of the loss of income from such sales.

earl howe: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) routinely scraps used tyres through a contractor, therefore none are exported overseas. However, when tyres are attached to heavy goods vehicles, it is possible that those over 10 years old could be exported, as all ex-MOD vehicles are sold as seen. There is currently no loss of income associated with such vehicle sales.

AWACS: Procurement

lord moonie: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect the Boeing E-7 production line for the conversion of Boeing 737NG aircraft to come back into service.

earl howe: While the E-7 Wedgetail is a mature, proven technology, it is produced to order and there is not a constant production line for the aircraft. However, the production line for the base Boeing 737 NG aircraft is still fully operational and has confirmed orders that will see it continuing for several years to come. Work is currently underway to establish a line to undertake the conversion work of the base 737 NG into the E-7 Wedgetail at Marshall Defence and Aerospace in Cambridge in preparation for our first aircraft to enter the modification process in 2021.

AWACS: Procurement

lord moonie: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they anticipate that the conversion of a Boeing 737NG aircraft to the E-7 configuration can be accomplished in two years; and what steps they are taking to ensure that timetable can be met.

earl howe: The schedule for delivery of our aircraft was a key part of our contractual negotiations with Boeing and, as part of the due diligence process, it was subjected to scrutiny and a thorough risk assessment. Consequently, we are confident that the agreed average 24-month modification schedule accurately reflects the expected duration for a project of this nature and scope. Boeing has identified an experienced team to manage the modification programme to ensure it is successful. For this project, Boeing has recruited individuals with a wealth of experience from previous E-7 modification programmes from the US and Australia, who have been involved in all the previous customer programmes. Throughout the project there will, of course, be regular reviews to monitor progress and ensure that it remains on track.

AWACS: Procurement

lord moonie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the failure of Boeing to deliver the KC–46 tanker programme and the removal from commercial service of 737 MAX aircraft on the availability of engineering resources for its E-7 conversion programme.

earl howe: The E-7 is based on the Boeing 737 NG aircraft and not the 737 MAX so is not affected by the current issues with that variant. Similarly, the E-7 project is independent of the KC-46. Boeing has identified an experienced team to manage the modification programme to ensure it is successful. For this project, Boeing has recruited individuals with a wealth of experience from previous E-7 modification programmes from the US and Australia, who have been involved in all the previous customer programmes. Throughout the project there will, of course, be regular reviews to monitor progress and ensure that it remains on track and is appropriately resourced. Boeing is a company of the size and scale to be able to flexibly manage its resources across multiple priorities from a wealth of available skills and experience.

AWACS: Procurement

lord moonie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what impact deferring contracting training, infrastructure and other services for E-7 Wedgetail aircraft will have on their ability to negotiate competitive prices.

earl howe: There has not been any deferral of contracting for these additional services. It is common in acquisition projects of this size and complexity to adopt an incremental procurement approach that enables a better alignment of the build-up of the aircraft fleet and capability with the points at which such additional services are actually required. An overriding consideration in any contract is, of course, to seek best value for money for defence, and there are a variety of mechanisms available to ensure this, including competition or the application of Single Source Contracts Regulations.

Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme

lord rogan: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether theyintend to issue a formal response following the publication of the final report of theindependent public inquiry into the Non-domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme.

lord duncan of springbank: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland awaits the publication of the final report of the independent public inquiry into the Non-domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme. She will respond in due course.

Northern Ireland Office: Senior Civil Servants

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the process for the appointment of a new Director General in the Northern Ireland Office; and what was the cost of that process.

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the business case for appointing a new Director General in the Northern Ireland Office; who approved the business case; and to whom the Director General will report.

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they consulted the government of the Republic of Ireland on the appointment of the new Director General of the Northern Ireland Office; and which UK political parties, if any, they consulted.

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish a detailed job description for the Director General of the Northern Ireland Office and their annual salary.

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they made of the operation of the senior management team in the Northern Ireland Office before creating the new Director General post; for what reasons they established the Director General post; and what is the overall cost, including salaries, of the senior management team at the Northern Ireland Office.

lord duncan of springbank: The Northern Ireland Office appointed a new Director General to support the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Permanent Secretary at a challenging time for Northern Ireland and the wider UK. The appointment was made in accordance with Cabinet Office guidelines and approved by the Civil Service Senior Leadership Committee and Cabinet Secretary. Roles, responsibilities and salaries of the senior management team are published in the Department's Annual Report and Accounts.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade: USA

lord bowness: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers byViscount Younger of Leckie on 10 May (HL15426) and 22 May (HL15708), what are the sectors in which the UK trades with the United States solely on World Trade Organisation terms; and what sectors are covered by the agreements between the United States and the EU to which the UK is a party.

viscount younger of leckie: The UK is currently party to a small number of trade related agreements between the EU and the US. These cover issues such as mutual recognition of conformity assessment in certain sectors. The UK has now completed work to transition these agreements to bilateral UK-US agreements. They are ready to come into effect when the UK leaves the EU. On 14 February 2019, the UK and US signed a Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) on Conformity Assessment to ensure continuity of mutual recognition in the following three sectors: good manufacturing practice for pharmaceuticals, telecommunications equipment, and electromagnetic compatibility. Other agreements, including on wine, spirits and marine equipment have been signed between the UK and US to ensure continuity as the UK leaves the EU. These agreements do not cover all of UK trade with the US. The US continues to be our single largest bilateral trading partner. This is why we have announced that we will prioritise a UK/US free trade agreement when we have left the EU.

EU External Trade: Trade Agreements

lord bowness: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byViscount Younger of Leckie on 10 May (HL15426), how many of the countries with which the UK trades solely on World Trade Organisation terms have agreements with the EU to which the UK is a party.

viscount younger of leckie: In my answer to my noble Friend on 30 April (HL15424), it was noted that the UK, as a Member of the EU, trades with 27 World Trade Organisation (WTO) Members on “WTO Terms”. The EU has no comprehensive bilateral or regional preferential tariff arrangements in place with these WTO Members.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Museums and Galleries: Finance

baroness bonham-carter of yarnbury: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessmentthey have made of the distribution of grant-in-aid funding; and what plans they have to increase the number of museums which are in receipt of grant-in-aid funding.

lord ashton of hyde: The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport provides grant-in-aid funding to the 15 sponsored museums and galleries in England - with culture being a devolved matter - and the Ministry of Defence for the three armed forces service museums. The 2017 Strategic Review of DCMS-Sponsored Museums examined their functions, effectiveness, efficiency and accountability, and included a commitment to review grant-in-aid allocations at the next Spending Review, taking into consideration whether changes are required to meet current needs and performance. At this time, the government has no plans to directly fund other museums through grant-in-aid. However, many other museums are subject to public funding and the 2017 Mendoza Review of Museums in England confirmed that, over the last ten years, the museum sector has received more than £800 million annually from at least 16 different public sources. Arts Council England is the main funding body for the wider museums sector and, between 2018 and 2022 will invest more than £146m in grant-in-aid in museums across England.

Design: Exports

baroness bonham-carter of yarnbury: To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of the value of UK exports to (1) EU, and (2) non-EU, countries are linked to the design sector.

lord ashton of hyde: The design sector plays a significant role across the UK economy, contributing to the production of goods and services in a number of sectors. The sector is one of our fastest growing industries, and continues to outperform the wider UK economy. DCMS Economic Estimates show that in 2016, the UK exported £380 million of design and designer fashion services, representing a 212.2% increase since 2010. This includes £151 million worth of exports to the EU, and £229 million to non-EU countries. Furthermore, the Design Council’s report entitled ‘The Design Economy 2018’ estimates that the total value of exports where design had made a key contribution was £48.4 billion in 2015, representing 7% of all UK exports.

5G

the lord bishop of st albans: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Nominet 5G spectrum sharing, published in September 2018, which explores dynamic spectrum access possibilities for 5G.

lord ashton of hyde: In July 2018 Government published the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review which set out Government’s long-term strategy for world leading telecoms infrastructure. In the Review Government identified the introduction of flexible, shared spectrum models - such as dynamic spectrum access - as a strategic priority. Government regularly engages with industry on a range of topics - including spectrum sharing and 5G - and welcome industry feedback, including Nominet’s report. Government will continue to work with Ofcom and industry to support innovation and investment and encourage competition within the market. We recently published our draft Statement of Strategic Priorities which consulted on, among others, our spectrum sharing ambitions. Ofcom, as the national regulatory authority, will have regard to these when carrying out the management of spectrum and other relevant functions.

Television: Licensing

lord truscott: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are aware that the BBC is charging licence payers £16.50 to record a change of address online; and whether they consider this to be a fair practice delivering value for money.

lord ashton of hyde: TV Licensing does not charge customers to change their address. However, third party websites may charge customers an additional fee for buying a TV Licence or changing details when these services are provided for free by TV Licensing. Such third party sites offering TV Licensing services are not endorsed by TV Licensing. Customers are always advised to contact TV Licensing directly or go to the official site at www.tvlicensing.co.uk. Further information is available to the public on the official TV Licensing website at https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/faqs/FAQ312

Electronic Warfare

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to strengthen UK defences against new threats posed by (1) misinformation campaigns, and (2) cyber warfare.

lord ashton of hyde: The Government takes the issue of disinformation very seriously. DCMS is leading work across Government to tackle it. The recently published Online Harms White Paper sets out our expectations for tech companies to take proportionate and proactive measures to minimise the spread of misleading and harmful disinformation and the potential sanctions they will face if they do not. The Government is also working closely with industry, civil society and international partners to mitigate against the threat of online disinformation campaigns. For example, ahead of the European Parliament elections, DCMS led a cross-government effort to monitor for any disinformation campaigns so that we were ready to respond to them quickly and effectively. Cyber is a tier 1 threat and remains a national priority. This was made clear in The Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) 2015 and reinforced by the National Cyber Security Strategy, published on 1 November 2016. The strategy sets out ambitious policies to protect the UK in cyber space, supported by a £1.9 billion transformational investment across ten years. Our vision for 2021 is that the UK is secure and resilient to cyber threats, prosperous and confident in the digital world. The implementation of the National Cyber Security Strategy led to the establishment of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) in 2016. The NCSC is a world-leading cyber security capability, providing the UK with a unified platform to handle national cyber incidents, replacing an array of bodies with a single point of contact in Government for the private sector. The UK is also building a dedicated capability to counter-attack in cyber space as part of our full-spectrum capability. Defence is delivering this capability in partnership with GCHQ through the National Offensive Cyber Programme.